Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Brr!!! I woke up this morning to a freezing room and had the hardest time forcing myself to get out of my toasty bed. I finally managed to practically fall out of it (long fall, by the way) and turned on the weather channel for an explanation of the chill. 43 degrees! I love cold weather, but not in my room.

So why was my room so darn cold!? Well... for a while now I've noticed I can hear people outside as well as if they were standing in my room, which is weird considering I make sure I shut the window completely and all that to have some peace and quiet. Well, I walked over to the window this morning to open the blinds and I felt a breeze. A breeze! A very, very chilly breeze. Inside my room. Strange, right?

I look up at the top of my window and notice that the Christmas lights I hung around it (yes, already... don't judge) have fallen somewhat. So I grab my chair and scoot it in front of the window and climb up onto the windowsill (dangerous) and tape the lights back up.

Once again, I feel a breeze. I'm smart enough to know that you're not supposed to feel a breeze coming from a closed window. So I search for the culprit. That's when I find that the top part of the window is pulled down a little, leaving about 2 or 3 inches of open window and the very top. Naturally, I try to push it back up to close it, kind of confused to why the top window would be down at all (cause that just doesn't make sense). Well it won't budge. Not a bit. And I'm no weakling.

I normally wouldn't think this is much of a problem, except that it's supposed to get down to 33 degrees tonight. Yeeaaahhhh... so you see the problem. So unless I can get ahold of maintenance, I will be sleeping in two pair of sweatpants, a long sleeve thermal, sweatshirt, and covered by every blanket I have.

Monday, October 27, 2008

::SIGH:: A huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders as I have officially finished my feature news package on blogs! After over seven hours in the editing lab (seven CONSECUTIVE hours) I finally finished (after making a panicked phone call to a friend in the class who came to the stadium at like 8:30 just to help me out - Thanks Angelo! You're "the greatest"). I'm really proud of the final project. Some of yall's pages are in it!

So two packages down, one to go... but I can't think of what to do it on. Any ideas anyone?

Well now it's time to work on my next story, a book report, research paper, photography project, and weekly reaction papers and quizzes. Whew.

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Let me just start by saying that fall is by far my favorite time of year. Cool air, sunny skies, leaves changing colors, jackets, jeans, boots, scarves, pink cheeks and noses, sitting out on Landis Green reading a book under an oak tree... it's all so wonderful. This season just makes me happy, and I can't help but notice that other people seem more happy too.

Well in the spirit of fall, and the quickly approaching Halloween festivities, Elizabeth and I partook in some fall traditions.

We didn't get to go to the pumpkin patch yesterday - it was raining so we went to Cracker Barrel for some comfort food (I was having a really bad day that just kept getting worse - like driving over to Liz's in a hurry and setting up camera equip. to film her typing at her computer for my story, only to find that I forgot a very vital component - my tape, duh). So after running around and me trying not to break down we ate a yummy dinner, and then headed to the dollar movie theater for some much needed down-time. We watched The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (which was absolutely amazing!!! Alexis Bledel is my hero. The end.)

Anyway... after a long night (I was up until after 2 am working on my script - but thanks to everyone for the good luck wishes!), I woke up to a BEAUTIFUL fall morning. Elizabeth picked me up and we went to the pumpkin patch to pick out the perfect pumpkins. Well, apparently, perfect pumpkins no longer exist a week before Halloween, but we found charming ones nonetheless. I named mine Delilah and Elizabeth named hers Patrick. We then headed back to my room to pick up some stuff, went to Lake Ella to film my standup, then finally sat down to carve our pumpkins! It was definitely a ton of fun, and hilarious. Delilah turned out nicely if I do say so myself. She has her flaws, but what charming pumpkin doesn't!? Patrick had to have a name change, though. Elizabeth carved "LOVE" into it and so he kind of lost a lot of his masculinity, so we changed the name to Amore. :o) They're both adorable.

We finished all our holiday fun for now and I spent the afternoon recording my voice track for my package. Tomorrow I'll just spend a good part of the day editing. Wish me luck on making this an amazing story!

Friday, October 24, 2008

So I've been working on my script for my feature news package on blogs and blogging. Sounds great, right? Well it would, except it seems I've forgotten how to write. Really. Nothing sounds good. I'm having the hardest time making everything flow together. It's not smooth, parts of it are downright bad, some are just corny, and overall it's no where near where I want it to be. Oh and did I mention the whole thing is due Wednesday? And I still have to get video, shoot my standup, record my voice track, and edit the whole dang thing together. AAANNNNDDDD... the stadium is closed all day Saturday because we have a home football game so I can't get into the editing lab until Sunday. UGH! Can you tell I'm frustrated?

However, the silver lining is that this afternoon I'm spending time with Elizabeth and we're hopefully going to pick out our pumpkins! (depending on the weather) The plan is to go to church, pick out the perfect pumpkins, head back to campus and carve them on Landis Green, then out to dinner (no doubt BBQ), and then back to church to watch an outdoor (I believe) showing of Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin. Doesn't that sound fun!? So I'm excited for that.

Well that's it for now. I'm going to go try and tackle my script again. Pray for my writing abilities to come back to me. I miss them. I'm just not the same without 'em.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Ok, I realize I'm on a blogging frenzy today, but I just have to share with ya'll some crazy stuff. And I really mean insane. (Courtney is most likely blogging about the same exact thing this instant so read both of ours... hers is probably much more hilarious.)

So Court and I decide to go on an excursion away from campus today. Ross, Target, Michaels, Cracker Barrel, and Publix. Anyway, we head to the parking garage and see a young man in a blue car (which looks like a 1970s police car) looking for a parking spot. Being the charming girls that we are, we tell him that we're heading to our car on the 3rd floor and we'll wait for him to get there so he can have our spot. He says the usual thank yous and we tell him where we're parked.

We head up there and a guy is parked by the stairs stalking people as they come up to go to their cars. We tell him, yes, we're leaving, but we already told someone he could have our spot. Sure enough, buddy comes around the corner. "Did ya'll turn that guy down for me?" "Yep," Courtney says. "Thanks!" Gotta love a guy that is genuinely thankful.

So we head out and he takes our spot as we all wave at each other. Good times. We go out on our excursion and basically have more fun than should be allowed. And spent way too much money. Oh well... they say you should do what you're good at.

Anyway, we finally make our way back to campus and the dreaded parking garage. I'm feeling good though, because Courtney is my good luck parking charm. So we look around on the first two floors to no luck and head to the 3rd floor, where what do you know... we park in the exact same spot we left 4 hours earlier. THE SAME SPOT!!! And as if that wasn't crazy enough... our blue car buddy (who we have now named Officer Chase) comes driving up the ramp. He spots us and gives a wave. HOW INSANE IS THAT!?

4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs

5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

6. Let your tagger know when your entry is UP

6 Things That Make me Happy...

1. Love. Whether it be a hug from my parents, words of encouragement from a friend, or just a smile. Everyone wants to love and be loved.

2. Family and friends. I don't know where I would be without my family. They have been so supportive of me throughout my life and are really my foundation. These amazing people bring me up when I'm feeling down. They make me smile constantly and they stand by me even when they think I'm wrong. They're truly amazing and I thank God for them every day.

3. Books. I am a total bookworm. I mean really. I could literally spend all day with my nose in a book. The world could be crashing down around me and I would be oblivious. My friends come over to pick books from "the library" in my room, and call me from bookstores for suggestions. :-) I love it. I want to own my own bookstore one day in the mountains of NC so books are a major part of my life. They take us somewhere where we can put our world aside, if just for a few minutes, and become someone else. We can travel the world without leaving our bed, we can develop magical powers, we can do unimaginable things, all because of books. :-D

4. Coffee. I really don't think I need to elaborate on this. It's what keeps me sane... and functional.

6. Jeans. It's amazing how wonderful a good pair of jeans can make you feel. They definitely have a softspot in my heart. My favorite pair have been worn and washed so many times that the holes in the knees just keep getting bigger and the color just keeps on fading. "Think of my head on your chest and my old faded blue jeans..." But these jeans tell a story, a story of who I am, and I wouldn't throw them away for anything. :-D

Now for my 6 random things/habits/quirks...

1. My left eye is half blue, half brown. Basically, when I was about 6 years old it decided it no longer wanted to be completely blue, so over the years the brown has gradually been taking over the blue. Brown has always been the conquest type. So eventually, my left eye may be completely brown while my right eye remains very much blue. Crazy, but cool. :-)

2. Daisies are my favorite flower. :-) They never fail to make me smile.

3. I love to write. I've started writing 3 books to date. Haven't finished any of them, but they're out there.

4. I wear the same earrings every day. My mom's old pearls. I love them.

As you all know, I'm into broadcast journalism and am hoping to become a reporter and eventually anchor or correspondent one day. So I'm taking a TV Interviewing and Hosting class where we do our own news stories. Well I've got one done, two to go. Right now we're all working on feature news stories, which aren't as intense as hard news. Since I've been so obsessed with blogging lately, I decided to pitch an idea on blogs and how college students are using them for different things.

So I thought I'd just tell you all how it's going so far.

I've interviewed two professors (one gave me a lot of great soundbytes, the other - none), and two students (Courtney and Elizabeth - thank you!). I've got a lot of great information, but the problem arises in the fact that there's not much video to use. You can only show so many computer screens.

But no worries, I'll get it figured out.

My favorite part of the whole thing so far is a soundbyte from Elizabeth that went something like this (I'm paraphrasing)...

"Contrary to what most of the world thinks, college students actually have a lot to say and blogging is one way for us to get our thoughts and ideas out there."

Ain't that the truth!

So wish me luck and keep your eyes open... you might see your blog on the news ;-)

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

"Any writer who knows a lot knows there's a lot to know. And every writer should know that what counts most is what you learn after you know it all." - Mervin Block

Oh Merv, how wise you are. I've been reading my "professional handbook" for broadcast newswriting - "Writing Broadcast News: Shorter, Sharper, Stronger" by Mr. Merv himself. For those of you writers, especially those interested in news or the media, I highly recommend this book. It may sound boring, but it's oh-so-entertaining. So like I said, I've been reading it and thought I'd share with you some of my favorite parts. This is, after all, a blog called the cure for writer's block.

A few of the "Dozen Deadly Don'ts" -

- Don't give orders. Don't tell listeners to do this or that. Don't tell them to listen, or watch, or stay, or fetch. Just give them the news.

- Don't use newspaper words... Slay is another word we should kill on sight. Slay is a good Anglo-Saxon word, but slay is not so strong as kill or murder. And slay isn't conversational. I don't know anyone who says slay. Nor do I know anyone who uses the past tense, slew, or the past participle, slain. So don't use slay unless you're talking about dragons. Or Santa.

- Don't start a story by saying, A new development tonight... Every item in a newscast is supposed to be fairly new, based on something newly developed. And don't start with "Our top story tonight is..." If it's the first story, it should be the top story. Top stories run at the top. So skip that needless opener and go right to the news. And don't write, "Topping our news tonight..." Sounds like Reddi Whip.

-Don't characterize news as unusual. We don't report the usual do we? Not usually.

- Don't start a story with as expected. When I hear an anchor say as expected at the top, it's usually a story I had not expected. Hadn't even suspected. Most listeners tune in to hear the unexpected. Even seers have no idea of what to expect.

A couple "venial sins" -

- Don't use In other news as a transition. Every story on a newscast is other news. Each story differs from all other stories. If the first five minutes has been devoted to one big story, shift to the next story by going to commercial. Or pausing. Or changing tone. Or changing camera. Or anchor. Or writer.

-Don't hotrod. Hotrodding is high-powered writing... One way to avoid hotrodding is not to write on a hypewriter. We want our copy to be calm, clean, clear and crisp, true and trustworthy. And free from sin.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Well folks... I think my luck is turning around. Why do I think this? Well let me explain...

You all know about my horrific towing experience. I'm getting all fired up inside just thinking about it. Anyway, I lost quite a bit of moolah in that whole "situation" and was forced to cancel a shopping trip in Orlando with Kyla to buy some snazzy Seven for All Mankind jeans (which I've wanted for a long time). Needless to say, it was extremely depressing. (Even more depressing was that I didn't get to see Ky all weekend :-( but we'll make up for it in 2 weeks!

So I was pretty bummed about such a large loss of money that was all due to stupidity on my part, which makes it that much harder to handle.

But then luck smiled down upon me in the form of mail from my wonderful learning institution. From the outside, it looked like just another piece of junk from some office at FSU, and normally I would just toss it, but for some reason I felt I should open it. So I did just that and pulled out a slip of paper, no ordinary slip of paper, mind you, but a check written to me from FSU for $100.

Can you believe it!!??

I have no clue why they sent me a check for a hundred bucks, but I don't ask questions when I'm being handed money - just a little rule I follow.

So now my bank account is a little more padded and I may be able to buy those wonderful jeans after all. :-) So Ky, be ready to go shopping after Halloween!

Friday, October 17, 2008

Oh boy... what an afternoon I had yesterday. Most of you have already heard all about it, but it's the perfect topic for my dear blog. So here goes nothing...

As you all know, I was really excited to go home for the weekend. I had all my stuff packed and ready so I could just grab it and head to my car right after class. So I got all by bags and made my way to the parking garage where I parked my car Tuesday after going to Publix.

I walked to the ground floor and over to where I parked. No Old Faithful. I thought to myself, Ok, you must not have parked here. I mean, it's not the first time I've forgotten where I parked. So I walk around the ground floor (I knew for sure I parked on the bottom floor) followed by a girl in a car that wanted my spot (but she didn't even offer me and my luggage a ride!!!).

So eventually I end up back where I started... the spot I was certain once held my sweet old Volvo. I look up on the wall in front of it and see a little yellow sign - "Service Vehicle Parking Only. All others will be towed."

TOWED!!!!

I called FSUPD and was told that, indeed, my darling Old Faithful had been seized against her will and towed away. So I call the towing company to see if I can come pick it up. "Sure, do you have your release form?" What release form!!?? "You have to have a release form from FSU Parking and Transportation before I can give you back your car." What the -!?? "Oh, and you might want to hurry, they close in five minutes." Great. Fabulous. Smashing.

So I called Parking and Transportation. No answer. Tried again. Still no answer. Third time? Not the charm. Finally, I managed to get ahold of the receptionist and begged her to wait for me to get there to get a release form (by this time it's 5:00). She reluctantly agrees and I book it to the stadium.

To make a long (and painful) story short, after a long series of unfortunate events, I was reunited with Old Faithful. I have never been more happy to see her.

So I finally left Tallahassee around 6:45 p.m. and got home around 11:15 p.m., exhausted and broke ($135 to the towing company - $20 to FSU - $35 for gas - $5 for drive thru).

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Today I'm going home for a much needed weekend of family and friends. I've got a bunch of fun things planned, breakfasts, lunches, dinners, shopping, watching G-squared with mom and Ky, a haircut from amazing Shannon, and hopefully some relaxation.

I used to hate living in a small town because everyone knows everyone's business, but what I would give right now for someone to tell me all about so-and-so, or going to my favorite restaurants and skipping the whole ordering process altogether. Yes Louis's, Sonny's, Your Place, and El Leoncito's - that means you.

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

FINALLY! I have some wonderful (and I really mean WONDERFUL) news!!! Where to begin? Let's start with the beginning...

I'm currently taking a political communication course that is really interesting. The professor is great and really knows what he's talking about. The problem is, he doesn't use slides, or give notes... he just lectures. Don't get me wrong, I love that teaching style because it encourages interaction and discussion among the class, which is really important in a political class, especially with this upcoming election. The problem arises when it comes time to take tests. Let's just say the day he handed back the first test was not one of my prouder moments. I'm a big fan of A's. Not too crazy about D's. The class average was a 68. Yeah.

So today we start talking about the second test coming up next week and out of no where MacNamara says he has a theory about this generation of college students. He said he wants to prove his colleagues wrong and show that students don't have to be tested in order to come to class, pay attention, take notes, and really learn. So what did he do? He cancelled the test. CANCELLED IT! But there's more... Not only did he cancel the test, but he's giving us all 100's. Oh yeah.

Well obviously we were all skeptical. Is he kidding? Did the stock market really push MacNamara off the edge? But no... he was serious, and I applaud him.

I don't mind tests, I'm usually pretty good at them, but I totally agree that students who really care will still come to class and truly learn without the threat of having a test looming over them.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

I'm not a fan of blonde jokes, for obvious reasons, and I do my best to prove to the world that not all blondes are morons. Well... the smart blondes of the world took a hit today from one of their own on FSU's campus.

I was walking to class, minding my own business, checking everyone out (I'm a big people watcher; friends have had to kick me to make me stop staring on occasion). Anyway, I walk past a girl wearing a shirt that says, "Brunette is the new blonde." Fine, whatever, I can't say anything because I have a shirt that says "I had a nightmare I was a brunette." So I'm thinking, ok cool, whatever, until I glance up at her hair. Blonde. The girl had blonde hair! Hello!!!! Does she not realize that she is, indeed, a blonde!? So needless to say, us intelligent blondes (or even those with any clue at all) will be having to work extra hard around here to save face.

Monday, October 13, 2008

I think I should probably slow down on the brownie sundaes. I know this sounds crazy coming from me and that some of you are absolutely shocked these words are coming from my mouth (or fingers, I guess), but it's true. So why am I contemplating this drastic change in my lifestyle? Because the brownie sundae gods spoke to me today, and they weren't happy.

Courtney came over to watch the Samantha Who? season premiere and eat some yummy brownie sundaes. So I make the brownie mix as usual, put it in the usual brownie sundae coffee mug, and put it in the microwave for the usual minute and 15 seconds. Recipe for success, right? I mean, even I can't get that wrong. I've been doing this like three or four times a week for years! So the timer went off on the microwave and I reached in to take it out. I made it halfway to my desk when I realized the mug was practically on fire and my thumb and three fingers were burning. Natural reaction - drop the mug. So then my wonderful FSU coffee mug from Primrose shattered and uncooked brownie mix splattered on the floor. Uncooked! I can't figure out what happened? So anyway, Courtney did hers and it turned out fine, and I did another one and it turned out fine, and we both enjoyed our delicious desserts after Court brought down some paper towels so I could clean up the chocolate mess.

We watched the amazing Samantha Who? as I iced my poor fingers and now I'm typing to you with my swollen and blistered fingers. That's dedication ya'll.

Word of advice: beware the brownie sundae gods. They're not in a good mood tonight.

I was so excited to relax this weekend and let my body recuperate, that it was really upsetting to find that the world had other plans.

Saturday night my stomach starts to hurt. Hmmm... no biggie... I'm a trooper. Bring it on. Sunday morning and most of the afternoon I was fine. Boy was I wrong. I went out to dinner at Jim & Milt's with Courtney (yes I eat there a lot) and had my usual Yankee sandwich and sweet tea. Then we went to the mall to get Halloween stuff, only to find that it was closed... at 6 p.m. Way to keep it real Tallahassee. Way to keep it real. You'd think this was a sleepy old town in the middle of no where instead of the capital of Florida as well as a college town.

Anyway, I digress. So we shop around and then head back to campus. No sooner than I enter my room and the blood just rushes from my face. I mean, I'm pale enough already... but if someone saw me last night they would probably think I was a ghost. For real. Well I'll spare you all the gruesome details, but I was very sick. Not a fun few hours. After throwing up numerous times, I managed to pass out in bed and slept like a log. Apparently I even answered a phone call and talked for a little while. (I don't remember it at all.)

Well since I passed out before doing any of my usual before-bedtime-rituals, I didn't set my alarm clock. Thankfully, my biological clock is annoying as all get out and woke up at 7:35 a.m. Class starts at 8 and if you're late, you're screwed, especially today because our news stories were due. So I managed to put clothes on, brush my teeth, grab my tape, and run to the stadium. I made it on time, but I'm pretty sure everyone thought I was hungover or something. Not so. Just exhausted. So I turned in my package and ate the poptart I stuffed in my bag as I walked out the door. Never, ever, forget the food. Right, Ky?

So now I'm in the process of cleaning up the scattered mess I created last night. Clothes somehow found their way into the weirdest places - on my tv, under my mattress... I know, weird. I guess I also knocked over the Tylenol bottle because I keep stepping on little white caplets. But it's coming together. No worries.

I suppose I should explain my blog's new name. I'm not exactly a genius when it comes to coming up with crafty names for things, so I enlisted my bestie and my adopted sister to come up with something for me. And today they settled on "The Cure for Writer's Block". Perfect, I know. I'm a writer, working on a couple books right now, and they are basically my go-to people when I'm stuck and my brain is just not working. So I hope ya'll enjoy it as much as I do. Thanks Ky and Ashley! (P.S. the adorable bookworm picture - Ashley designed and drew that. Check out her stationary company at http://ashleybrookedesigns.blogspot.com. And for a really good laugh when you're having a rough day, read all about the insanely random and hilarious things that go on in Kyla's life at http://eatyourcakeandhaveittoo.blogspot.com.)

Good news!! I finished my news package! Whoop! Whoop! Annndddd... the editing only took 4 and a half hours! I was back in my room in time to catch the end of Grey's! (except now I've got to go online and watch the beginning). Anyway, I'm feeling very proud of myself. :-)

I tried to make up for my lack of sleep last night, planning to sleep in until at least 9 or 10 this morning. Well... Audrey had other plans. The poster fell on me... again... around 6 this morning. I'm starting to rethink my halloween choice. I was planning on being little miss Audrey but I'm thinking she's got it in for me now. I took her down and she's currently leaning up against the wall on the floor where she can't do any damage.

I piddled around this morning... did some cleaning, watched Regis and Kelly (duh), watched the stock market plummet (scary), and then decided I'd try to start a trend and boost the economy by going shopping. So I put on my new camo and pink FSU hat, grabbed my purse, and headed to the mall. I got some super-cheap fake pearls for my halloween costume and FINALLY found a messenger bag. About dang time. Then it was off to Publix to get some ice cream before I go crazy. At that point my stomach was growling really loud and people walking by were looking at me funny, so I called Jim & Milts (only the best BBQ in the tri-state area!) and ordered me a Yankee sandwich (I really don't know why they call it a Yankee sandwich because this is the south, and as my grandfather would say, "go get them yanks!", whatever that means) and swung by there to pick up some comfort food and some oh-so-perfect sweet tea. I then drove back to campus and wandered around the parking garage trying to find a spot... scored one on the 3rd floor (bummer) and then walked all my bags into the dorm (no easy task). Courtney and Leah were on their way out to GA, officially taking almost all my friends away from Tally for the weekend.

Forgot to mention, before making my way to the mall (with only the good intentions of boosting the economy, mom) I went over to Lake Ella. Usually Elizabeth and I spend our Friday mornings at the Black Dog Cafe drinking coffee and talking... and talking... :-) However, she is at home this weekend and I just couldn't bring myself to go without her, so I went over to Barb's (Barb's Brittle, that is). Barb was waiting for me at the door (I'm so predictable) and had a bag of sunflower seed chocolate brittle ready. But I surprised her and got 2 bags! One for my dear Kyla who I can't wait to see next weekend! Woohoo! For those of you who have never been lucky enough to experience Barb's Brittle, you have to... you just HAVE to. For those of you Yankees or south Floridians (lol) who don't even know what brittle is... you're in for a treat. It's melt-in-your-mouth goodness. Kyla and my personal favorite is sunflower seed chocolate, but you name a flavor, Barb's got it. So check it out. You won't be sorry. Promise. And you know how I feel about promises.

It should be a great weekend. :-) The rest of today will be mostly spent blissfully in bed with a book. (Nerd, I know.)

Song for the day - All I Want to Do - Sugarland"Let's just lay here and be lazy, baby, drive me crazy...All I want to do-ooo-ooo-ooo is love you..."

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Oh how I could use some sweet southern comfort right now. All I want to do is go up to my family in Georgia... walk out into the huge field behind the house... and just lay there. Doesn't that sound amazing!? Much better than the seven or so hours in front of a computer (a piece of technology I am convinced is out to get me) that lays ahead of me.

Class got out super early, an hour early in fact, so I'm just getting in some down time before I go off to torture myself.

Something I forgot to mention in the last post - last night I basically collapsed into my bed and fell asleep instantly. All my friends that have been around me at night know that I have to have 8 hours of sleep every night or else I'm really cranky in the morning (Allyssa's mom actually thought I was mad at her the day after homecoming one year - not so... just sleep deprived). I also have a tendency to start fading really fast without a moment's notice. (Kyla probably knows this better than anyone in that one minute we're rolling around laughing and the next I'm practically a zombie). So since I've been sleep-deprived for a week or so now, I faded really fast last night. It was like a brick wall hit me. So I fall into a blissful sleep in my nice, soft, cloud of a bed until about 3 a.m. when something big and heavy falls on top of me. Yes... on top of me! Turns out the hook holding up my very large Audrey Hepburn picture that hangs over my bed came off the wall, dumping Audrey and her glamorous self on top of me, scaring the crap out of me. I may have screamed, I can't remember.

On a high note... my super hot public policy professor (tall, thin, southern drawl, from NC, went to Auburn... I know, perfect) made eye contact with me today. EYE CONTACT! It could very possibly be the highlight of my day. And then on top of that, he handed back our tests from last week (meaning I was within a foot of him) and I got a 96! That's right, you heard me. Unfortunately, it doesn't give me an excuse to visit during office hours. Shucks.

Well I'm off to work on my news story. Hopefully tomorrow my post will include how I slept until noon because I finished my package and I'm done and can relax for the weekend.

Prayers would be much appreciated. And coffee. Don't forget the coffee.

Well I thought I'd give this blogging craze a try. I figure I've put it off long enough... time to jump on the bandwagon.

I feel I should warn you, if words start running together and nothing makes sense, it's because I've had a total of about 12 hours of sleep this week. I literally guzzle coffee like it's going out of style.

Why am I torturing myself? you ask. Well because I'm insane, that's why. I thought... hey, wouldn't being a reporter or an anchor be a great career? Yeah, sure, sounds fabulous. Except, who knew it would be so dang hard!? So I've been interviewing, filming, writing my script, doing my standup, and now I've reached the editing phase, which is what I imagine to be the equivalent of being placed on one of those medieval torture racks where they pull your arms and legs slowly away from the rest of your body until you just break. I know, doesn't it sound fun? The worst part is... I really enjoy reporting. :-) I'll just have to invest in some magic makeup to hide the big black bags under my eyes.

So on to other things... the next bestseller I've been working on hasn't had any attention in a couple weeks and is getting a little upset about that. So hopefully I'll get back to that soon. I finally gave it a title, and it's a perfect title, except wouldn't you know, there's already a book out there with it. "Just Kiss Me". Isn't that great? Oh well...

So let's talk about yesterday... I had class in the morning, before the sun came up (and if you ask me, no one should be up before the sun is), and then I go upstairs in the stadium to check out my camera equipment. What do ya know, the girl who had my camera before me didn't turn it in on time and wouldn't be able to bring it back until 2:45. Fantastic. So I headed back to my humble abode to get ready for my standup (the part in a news story where the reporter is on camera). So I put on my TV face, which requires using a ridiculous amount of makeup and leaves you feeling like a clown in a circus, and I did my hair - trying to make it all big and voluminous, and failing miserably. However, I finally got it all together in time to go pick up my camera from the stadium. So I start walking to the stadium in the 90 degree heat and what happens? It starts to rain. Yes, you heard me, rain. So the nice straight hair I was sporting just seconds earlier suddenly becomes a frizz ball that would match even the greatest afro. I finally got my equipment and made the long trek back to my room where I proceeded to redo my hair and get ready. My package partner called and asked if I could meet her at the bookstore to film her standup. Of course... so I walked back out, in the rain, in my little TV get-up, and my feet got soaked and started sliding around in my heels. So then I'm walking like a penguin trying to keep my shoes on. Not pretty. Really. Anyway... after a ton of things go wrong the rest of the day. I finally get to sit down to some dinner (frozen Michelina's... oh yes... gourmet). And what happens next? I spill fettuccine alfredo on my skirt. Of course. So I try to clean that up and then walk to the Police Station on campus with a wet spot on my skirt to film my standup (thankfully it didn't show).

So after a long and torturous day I finally got to wash my face, put on my jammies (which are quickly falling apart from so many washes), and watched Bones. I decided I deserved a brownie sundae (and if you know me, you know I decide this a lot), only to find out that I'm out of ice cream. I wanted to cry. So I just made the brownie, and it was definitely not as satisfying, but what's a girl to do?

Well now that I've complained for a good while... I think I'll go prepare for a long day and night. (There are many hours of editing ahead of me). And for anyone here at FSU that loves me and feels oh so sorry for me... I'll be in University Center D upstairs all night and coffee would be much appreciated. :-)

The Bookworm

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About the Author

Hey there, I'm Alyson.
Let's see... I'm a bit of a bookworm, love to write, survive on coffee, have the most amazing friends, and after a year of wandering around the country (aka 3,000 miles away to California) I'm back in the South where I belong. Follow along as I try to navigate this new life in the ATL. :)
And always feel free to email me at alyson.m.hart@gmail.com. I love love notes!